The NBA trade deadline can make or break your fantasy team. Deadline deals not only change the value of existing fantasy studs, but also rearranges depth charts, opening the door for tons of players sitting on the waiver wire. I was a little disappointed by this year’s deadline, which was one of the slower ones in recent memory, but it still opened the door for many. A player can go from untouchable to a must-add in the blink of an eye, so let’s take a look at what went down over the last few days and what it means for your squad.
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BUCKS RECEIVE: J.J. Redick, Gustavo Ayon, Ish Smith
MAGIC RECEIVE: Tobias Harris, Beno Udrih, Doron Lamb
FANTASY FALLOUT
The only fallout worth noting out of all six of these players belongs to J.J. Redick, who loses a little value on a deeper team. I’m sure he’ll see some time at the three, but with Brandon Jennings and Monta Ellis manning the backcourt, there will only be so many shots to go around. Redick also loses a little freedom. In Orlando he could shoot whatever, whenever because he was one of their best scorers and they were losing a lot of games. In Milwaukee, they are competing for a playoff spot so things are more about the team than the individual players.
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ROCKETS RECEIVE: Thomas Robinson, Francisco Garcia, Tyler Honeycutt, 2013 second-round pick
KINGS RECEIVE: Patrick Patterson, Cole Aldrich, Toney Douglas, cash
SUNS RECEIVE: Marcus Morris
FANTASY FALLOUT
This was actually two separate deals, one with Houston and Sacramento, and the other with Houston and Phoenix. The removal of Patrick Patterson and Marcus Morris opens up tons of time for Thomas Robinson. Houston was undersized outside of Omer Asik to begin with, and trading some frontcourt depth for a lottery talent like Robinson means the opportunity to succeed is his for the taking. His per-36 minute averages in 51 games for Sacramento include 11.0 points, 10.6 rebounds, 1.1 steals and 0.9 blocks, but his 42 percent field goal percentage and 58 percent free throw percentage will no doubt tank those categories for you. The Rockets play at a faster pace, so there’s some room for improvement on his counting stats. Patrick Patterson’s motor is always running, but reuniting with his old college teammate DeMarcus Cousins may rejuvenate him a bit. Marcus Morris is also reuniting with his brother and former college teammate Markieff Morris, but don’t expect too much out of him, or any other player involved in this deal. Francisco Garcia’s presence may take some time and touches away from Carlos Delfino.
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CELTICS RECEIVE: Jordan Crawford
WIZARDS RECEIVE: Leandro Barbosa, Jason Collins
FANTASY FALLOUT
We saw how effective Jordan Crawford can be while John Wall was out with injury, and offensively, it looks like he could be the top dog as far as guards go in Boston. Jason Terry is probably his biggest threat to touches, but Terry’s ability to distribute should mesh well. Crawford’s departure in Washington means they are really gearing up for the future, meaning Bradley Beal should see a slight uptick in minutes. Should Beal get hurt, which he’s had the propensity to do so far in his young career, touches will be dispersed among the group.
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RAPTORS RECEIVE: Sebastian Telfair
SUNS RECEIVE: Hamed Haddadi, second-round pick
FANTASY FALLOUT
This is a very low-key trade for both teams, and doesn’t have much fantasy implication either. Sebastian Telfair is nothing more than an insurance policy for the fragile Kyle Lowry. If you own Lowry in a deeper league, Telfair might be worth some consideration, but aside from that pay no attention to this deal.
Which teams should’ve made a move but instead stayed put?
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